4 festive exhibits you&#039;ve got to see at Vancouver Aquarium

DH Vancouver StaffDec 03, 2015 10:25 am

There are lots of great seasonal events happening in and around our city at this time of year. Unfortunately for us however, in Vancouver, it tends to rain a lot. So, on those wet December days, the Vancouver Aquarium is the perfect spot to not only stay dry, but celebrate the holidays.

The staff, along with the help of Scuba Claus, have decorated the aquarium from fin to tail with snow, lights, and ocean inspired decorations. Along with decorations that’ll have you feeling like you’re in the North Pole North, they also have a number of festive exhibits that are only available at this time of the year.

So in honour of the festive season here is our guide to four festive exhibits you can see at the aquarium this December.

Scuba Claus

Photo courtesy of The Vancouver Aquarium

Scuba Claus appears for daily dives in the Canada’s Arctic gallery with beluga whales Aurora and Qila. While you wont get to sit on his lap and tell him what you want for Christmas, we hear he’s gotten pretty good at lip reading. and Plus, Scuba Santa and beluga friends makes for an awesome, far from ordinary, yearly ‘picture with Santa’.

The Polar Express

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Loved watching ThePolar Express in theatres? Just wait till you watch it in the multi sensory, 4D theatre. Your seat jolts and rumbles while your hit with icy water, cold North Pole wind, and dusted with snow. If roller coasters aren’t you thing, this might now be the show for you. The 3D effects will make you forget you’re in a theatre and not blasting through steep snow capped mountains, aboard The Polar Express.

Electric eel holiday tree

Samantha Harris / Vancity Buzz

At the aquarium, they don’t bother with batteries and inconvenient outlets. The lights on the aquarium’s holiday tree are powered solely by its resident electric eel. Every time he sends out an electric shock, the tree shimmers and shines with bright green lights.

Marine debris tree

Samantha Harris / Vancity Buzz

Tofino based artist Pete Clarkson, built and decorated a tree with marine debris from nearby shorelines. The purpose behind this artwork is to show visitors the amount of litter that washes up in BC. He hopes that this display will help keep our shorelines clean and free from litter, which harms marine mammals, fish, and damage our ecosystems.

Photo courtesy of The Vancouver Aquarium

Scuba Claus dives daily until December 24, with all other holiday displays at the Vancouver Aquarium continuing until January 3, 2016. The Vancouver Aquarium is open 365 days a year. Hours of operation are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, and 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. seasonally/statutory holiday weekends. Tickets can be scanned off your smartphone or a printout or purchased upon arrival.